Not Even A Goodbye
by Sailor Grape
Summary: They met under not-so-pleasant circumstances but shared a wonderful night together. He needed the human contact, and she needed the comfort. Then he leaves without so much as a goodbye. Will she ever see him again? **COMPLETE**
1. Drowning in Tequila

Hey all, I have a new fic out. Yay for me! This is majorly different from MSWG, but I so had to run with the idea when it came to me. Please tell me what you think!  
  
Disclaimer: No one from the SM/GW worlds belongs to me...  
  
  
  
  
Sitting at the bar, he ignored the craze of the happy and buzzed people around  
him, who were too busy relishing in their own entertainment to give a damn about his  
pain. That was fine by him. He would have told them to piss off, anyway.  
  
Downing yet another shot of tequila, he squeezed his eyes shut as the warm liquid  
slid down his throat and coursed through his veins, joining the previous three shots. So  
far it was not having the desired effect on him; he was still coherent and all too aware of  
the reason that had brought him to the club in the first place. He considered his  
options. He could either give up and just deal with his problems like a man, or he could  
sit here and keep drinking until he passed out. Well, that was a no-brainer.  
  
He got another shot from the bartender and was about to toss it back when  
someone sat down on the unoccupied barstool next to him. "I need a drink."  
  
Even in his warped mindstate, he felt the need to be gracious. He pushed his shot  
of tequila over in front of the person. "Here you go."  
  
"No, thanks. I don't drink."  
  
At the statement, he whipped his head up to look at the person. She was  
beautiful, stunning even, with large, glittering azure eyes. Her marigold-colored hair  
was put up in the most unusual style he had ever seen, with or without his current  
buzz.  
  
He regarded her with confusion. "You want a drink, but you don't drink?" That was  
the most absurd thing he had ever heard.  
  
She smiled at him in amusement. "I wanted a bottle of water. I don't drink  
alcohol," she explained in a tone that suddenly made him guilty for drowning his  
sorrows in the bitter-tasting drinks.  
  
"I don't drink, either."  
  
Just from the way he said it, and the look on his face, she could tell that he spoke  
the truth, that going on an alcohol binge was not an everyday occurrence. And for  
whatever reason, she was suddenly intrigued by this nagging urge to try and help him.   
"If that's the case, then why are you here?"  
  
He snorted. "You're not interested in my problems." He turned back to his drink  
and went to down it, but it was snatched out of his hand. "Hey," he growled at the  
woman, who had put the shotglass on the bar out of his reach.  
  
"I can tell you right now that drinking won't make it better," she told him in a  
smooth, even tone, hand on her hip defiantly.  
  
"Go play amateur shrink to someone else, all right? I'm not interested." Who did  
this woman think she was, anyway? Taking his drink like that. If he wanted to drink, it  
was his business, and no one else's. He turned to tell her that, but she was gone.   
Heaving a sigh of relief, he went to call to the bartender again, but he suddenly found  
himself yanked off of the barstool. "What the hell do you want?"  
  
The woman kept a firm grip on his arm, despite his struggle to release it. "You  
need to talk. I'm here to help."  
  
He could see that she was not about to back down anytime soon. Hell, what could  
it hurt? Besides, he wasn't exactly looking forward to being alone again. He allowed  
himself to be led to a table in the back of the club, taking a seat across from the  
woman who stared at him expectantly.  
  
He stared back her, his gaze never faltering. "What? What do you want me to  
say?"  
  
"Well, I brought you over here so you could talk, not so that we could stare at each  
other. So why don't you start talking?"  
  
Well, she certainly was straightforward. He had to give her credit for that. But he  
wasn't exactly the type of person to go around pouring his soul out to a complete  
stranger, especially one who seemed so interested. She didn't give off the vibe of  
having an ulterior motive, and he was usually a good judge of character. And maybe  
talking a little would help ease his mind. That thought alone was enough to get him  
started. "I didn't have the greatest day today," he admitted wearily. "Hell, I haven't had  
the greatest past couple of years, either. I suppose all the days start adding up."  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"I mean, there are factors in my life that just don't work out the way I want them to.   
I expect something to go one way, or a person to do something, and then the exact  
opposite happens. When you live your entire life like that, it can be somewhat  
discouraging."  
  
She was confused, and not just by his vagueness. His words were harsh, bitter,  
giving him the impression of being so much older than what he looked, which she  
guessed to be her own age, a solid twenty-two. He must have seen a hell of a lot to  
talk like he did. Of course, so had she, but she wasn't about to tell him that. This was  
his time to vent, not time to swap stories about who had been tortured the most.   
"You've been hurt," she acknowledged, seeing in him a tiny spark that she recognized  
in herself.  
  
"I have," he whispered, eyes staring blindly at the table. "I have no family; they're  
all dead. My friends, they have all been affected by the War. Even though we all lived  
together, we didn't interact like normal people would. I couldn't stand it. I moved out,  
just to get away from the madness. The only time I really talk to people is at work, and  
even that is a strained effort on my part. I don't feel anything. No happiness, no anger,  
nothing. It's like I'm numb." He buried his face in his hands.  
  
This was the first time he had ever admitted any of that. He felt like the thoughts  
were burying him alive, like he was being drowned in his own pool of misery. And now  
that everything was out in the open... he still felt miserable.  
  
A cool hand covered his own. He raised his head to stare in shock at the woman  
across from him, whose eyes sparkled with emotion. He didn't know how he missed it  
before. His own pain was mirrored in her eyes. She knew exactly how he felt because  
she had been through a similar hell. And here she was, trying to make him feel better  
for his sake. A flood of new emotions surged through him, overloading his brain until  
the colors around him began to blur together.  
  
"What's wrong?" she asked in concern as he squeezed his eyes shut. Her hand  
was still clasped around his, and she held it tightly.  
  
Opening his eyes, he met her gaze straight on. "Everything. Nothing." And both  
were true, at least in that moment. Suddenly his problems didn't seem to matter that  
much to him. The only thing that mattered was her.  
  
She knew what he meant. There were so many things for them to be angry about,  
to feel abused, abandoned, to cry over, but it wasn't even worth the effort any more.   
She felt like they were the same, kindred spirits in this crazy world.  
  
"Do you want to get out of here?"  
  
At the unexpected question, she nodded wordlessly, and it was his turn to lead her  
through the club and out the door. She was ushered into a black porsche, and they  
began their silent trek to the hotel he currently called home. They took the elevator up  
to the tenth floor, and he let them into his room.  
  
And it was a pretty decent room, too. Large and lavishly furnished in mahogany  
and navy, it seemed a suitable temporary home for the man. It was clean and showed  
no signs of anyone even staying there, save a laptop on the kitchen table.  
  
Locking the door, he walked over to her. "Do you want a drink?" he offered,  
knowing that she did not get the bottle of water that she had originally had in mind.  
  
"No," she answered softly, very aware of just how close he stood in front of her.  
  
"Something to eat?" He took a step closer, standing so that they were almost  
nose to nose.  
  
"No."  
  
"To talk?" he leaned in towards her, inching his way forward.  
  
She shook her head slightly, her wispy bangs brushing across his forehead in the  
movement. "No talking," she whispered before closing the remaining gap between  
them as her lips met his.  
  
It was the gentlest of kisses, their lips barely brushing against each other. And  
then it intensified as he pulled her against him, her soft curves fitting perfectly into his  
angular frame.  
  
She moaned when his lips left her mouth and began a trail down her neck, where  
they lingered on her collarbone. She was feeling so lightheaded, so dizzy, so... she  
couldn't even think clearly. All that she knew was the feel of his soft, warm lips on her  
neck, searing her flesh with their passion. And then she found herself pressed up  
against the wall, her hands tightly clutched around his back so that her legs wouldn't  
buckle beneath her.  
  
He slid one arm around her waist to hold her steady, all the while maintaining his  
assault on her neck. He felt her hands grow curious as they explored his back, finally  
pulling his shirt from his pants and slipping underneath the freed cotton fabric. The  
pads of her fingers pressed gently into his back muscles. He almost gasped as her  
hands slid around his body and up his chest, the electricity from her fingers igniting a  
wave of passion within him.  
  
Where were all of these feelings coming from? He didn't act like this. No, he never  
acted like this. He never felt anything even remotely close to this, and he never would,  
because absolutely nothing could compare to the way his heart was racing as her  
trembling fingers began to unbutton his shirt, finally pulling the abominable article of  
clothing off of him. As she pressed herself against him, he relished in the way the silk  
of her shirt trailed over his skin before he helped rid her of it.  
  
Now it was skin against skin, smooth and warm and inviting. Her heart danced in  
her chest as he expertly guided them backward to the bedroom. They fell back onto  
the bed in a tangle of limbs, each holding onto the other as if their lives depended on it.   
He pulled away just enough to ask, "Are you sure?" When she only captured his  
mouth with hers once more, he took that as a yes as they let the passion of each other  
engulf them long into the night.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
So, how was it? Confusing? Mysterious? Good! That means you'll stick around (hopefully). So, any guesses as to who our nameless people are? I hope you at least figured out the female, seeing as she's the only person I use as a main character... Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it, and stay tuned for the second chapter! 


	2. Morning Introductions

Wow... I'm so happy this fic received such a wonderful reaction! Don't ask me where the idea came from... I have no clue, but I simply had to write it. Now, I think I'm gonna get some mixed reactions in this chapter. You'll see what I mean at the end. Now, read on and enjoy!  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
The early morning sunlight streamed into the room, bouncing off the walls and filling  
the air with a sweet warmth. She yawned sleepily, not quite wanting to open her eyes  
in her newfound awoken state. Stretching her arms out above her head, she rolled over  
and into something. Opening her eyes in surprise, she was met with a quite  
unexpected sight.  
  
His eyes were on her, a lazy smile gracing his lips. He had been watching her  
sleep for about an hour, unable to tear his gaze away from the beauty lying next to him.   
Her crystalline eyes brightened a bit when she looked at him. "Ohayo," he greeted her.  
  
"Ohayo," she echoed, returning the smile. "Sleep well?"  
  
"Better than I have in ages." And it was the complete truth. On the nights that he  
actually got to sleep, his dreams were plagued with guilt and uncertainties, and he  
always woke up not long after. But not last night. No, last night he had slept. And he  
had dreamt, too, but they were dreams of the blonde angel lying beside him.  
  
"That's good." She sighed deeply, a thought crossing her mind. She remembered  
that she had also wondered about it last night, but she never got around to asking.   
"You know, we didn't even get each other's name. I'm Tsukino Usagi. And you are?"  
she asked, waiting for him to formally introduce himself to her.  
  
His grin only broadened. "This is completely not like me. I usually introduce  
myself first thing." He held out his hand. "Nice to meet you, Tsukino Usagi. I'm  
Quatre Raberba Winner."  
  
Taking his hand, she gave it a firm shake, keeping it in her grasp. Her crystalline  
eyes held his cerulean gaze. She could already see a difference in the way he felt from  
last night. His eyes had been shadowed, several shades darker than they were now,  
and it wasn't because of the dim lights in the club. Her heart swelled as she realized  
that she was partially the reason that he had forgotten his problems at least for a few  
hours. "Quatre," she let the name roll off of her tongue, weighing the sound in her  
mind. She liked the way it sounded when she said it.   
  
And once again, that sunny feeling of happiness washed over him as she said his  
name. He had never thought about it before; a name was just a name to him.   
Everyone had a name. But when she said his name, he suddenly got the urge to thank  
his parents for calling him something that sounded so beautiful when it fell from her  
lips.  
  
He smiled a smile of pure contentment as he simply let himself relish in the bliss  
that had been foreign to him for so long. It had taken him years to have a normal life in  
any sense of the world. But normalcy was a luxury that had soon been squandered by  
the beast known as life. Now here he was, with a woman he had just met, no less, and  
he felt happier than he ever had in his entire existence.  
  
"How are you feeling?"  
  
His eyes flickered with that unpleasant thought of his past worries, but it quickly  
fluttered away. "Wonderful," he murmured, pulling her lithe body to his and burying his  
face in her hair that was now free from her odangos. "You feel wonderful, too."  
  
She blushed, a flush of pink skating across her cheeks. There was no room for  
disagreement. They fit well together. The touch of his flesh against hers, the warmth  
of his arms around her, was like nothing she had ever felt before.  
  
Snuggling closer to her, Quatre sighed deeply as her cool hands began to stroke  
his bare back in long, soothing sweeps. Nothing was better than just lying next to her.   
If he had his way, he would have stayed that way forever.  
  
Unfortunately, fate did not want to humor him. A loud beeping resounded through  
the room, making Quatre groan. He reluctantly pulled away from Usagi. Making a grab  
for the pants lying on the floor next to the bed, he fished through the pockets before  
finding his beeper. When he saw the message, he swore under his breath.  
  
"Something wrong?" Usagi asked in concern, sitting up. Her hands still rested on  
his back.  
  
"Yes," he answered slowly, his eyes still staring at the blinking message. Of all  
the times for something to happen... Finally turning to her, he smiled apologetically. "I  
have to go. I'm needed at work. It's urgent." At least, it damn well better be for  
interrupting him from this moment. He climbed off the bed, quickly throwing on his  
clothes.  
  
Usagi only watched him, a disappointing fog lingering in her chest. She didn't want  
him to go. Last night had been beautiful, special, just like him. Waking up to him was  
even more wonderful. But what if she were the only one that thought so?  
  
At this thought, her eyes began to unconsciously waver. She had never spent the  
night with someone she had just met, much less without knowing his name. Hell, she  
had never spent the night with someone, period! This meant a great deal to her. And if  
she weren't mistaken, she could guess the same about him. Then again, her judge of  
character could be a bit off. Wouldn't be the first time, she admitted to herself, as an  
image of her former love, Chiba Mamoru, kissing another woman came to her mind.   
What if this was just a way to pass the time, to relieve the stress a bit.  
  
What if it were only--dare she say it?--a one-night stand?  
  
A sinking feeling that was kin to nausea fluttered up and drowned out the  
disappointment she had felt only moments before. No, that couldn't be the case.   
Quatre was way too sweet to ever do anything like that. Then again, he did  
conveniently get paged into work.  
  
Shaking her head slightly, she decided to not let herself believe anything one way  
or the other until he made it perfectly clear to her what was going on. "Quatre?"  
  
As if the sound of her voice startled him, Quatre jumped slightly from his position in  
front of the mirror, one hand combing through his matted blonde hair. He turned to  
Usagi, his eyes questioning. "Usagi?"  
  
"Quatre, I was wondering..." How did she put this without sounding both desperate  
and obvious? Contemplating her words, her tiny hands were wringing the sheet that  
surrounded her. "Quatre, what exactly was last night?"  
  
"I'm not sure I get your question," he responded slowly after a slight pause, his  
hand poised in midair.  
  
Usagi rapidly began sorting through possible answers in her head, then tried again.   
"Last night was... wonderful," she concluded, stealing a glance at him. From the look  
in his eyes, she would say he agreed. "Demo... what happens this morning?"  
  
"What do you mean? Ohhh..." Realization dawned upon him as he finally grasped  
the meaning behind the words she had been struggling with. How could she even think  
that this could be a one-night stand? All right, he could understand how she could  
think that, but still... How could anyone spend one night with this goddess and just  
walk away like nothing had happened?  
  
"Usagi." He went over to the bed, taking a seat on the edge next to her. When  
she looked down, he gently grasped her chin and tilted her head up so that she was  
looking at him. "This is the happiest I've been in my entire life. I would love nothing  
more than to see you again, which is why I'll give you a call tonight."  
  
"You don't have to--" Usagi started but was promptly interrupted as Quatre lay a  
finger over her lips.  
  
"I'll call you tonight," he repeated firmly, letting his hand drop to her cheek as he  
leaned over and kissed her with every fiber of being in his body. When he pulled away,  
they were both breathless and panting.  
  
"I have to go," he said reluctantly, standing. "Just leave your number on the  
notepad on the nightstand, and I'll call you tonight, ok?"  
  
"All right."  
  
Before he left, Quatre swooped down and crushed his lips against hers, breaking  
contact before he decided to just ignore the page he was sent and to climb back into  
the bed next to her. "Tonight," he repeated, giving her one last smile before leaving, the  
door closing with a soft click behind him.  
  
Her chest rising and falling with a sigh, Usagi allowed a tiny smile to adorn her lips  
as a feeling of great relief washed over her. Her worries had fluttered up for no reason.   
She would see him again, and she trusted his words wholly. With this thought, she  
promptly found a pen and tore a sheet of paper off of the notepad on the nightstand and  
wrote her name and number down.  
  
He had only just left, but she was already wishing him to come back. Knowing  
that she had to wait to see him again, Usagi reluctantly climbed out of bed, grabbing  
her scattered clothes and dressing. Setting the paper back on the nightstand, she  
grabbed her purse and left the hotel room.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Shocked? Surprised? Angered? Overjoyed? All this and more? Tell me! I need to know these things! I know, how, oh how did I choose the pairing for this fic? Well, it was unexpected and completely out there, which was why it had to be done. Besides, there aren't nearly enough Usa/Quatre fics out there! Ok, please review and tell me what you think. Thanks!! 


	3. Gust of Air

You guys are absolutely amazing. I certainly didn't expect this kind of reception with this fic. I'm sooooo happy you like it! And I want to apologize to everyone who so badly wanted it to be Heero. I must admit, he's my fave (right next to Quatre), and it was really hard to not make this H/U, but I wanted to do something different. And you have to admit, this is pretty different! Anyway, here's the next chapter. Read on and enjoy!  
  
Oh! If anyone wants to join my fic update list, here's the addy:  
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/GrapeFics/  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
"This had better be damn good," Quatre growled as he threw open the door to the  
office in the Preventers headquarters that he frequently inhabited. Normally he was one  
to accept his duties wholeheartedly and perform them as best he could. But today, he  
really wasn't in that kind of mood.  
  
At the harsh words coming out of the uncharacteristically pissed off blonde, the  
other occupants of the room could only stare in shock at their friend and comrade.   
Since when did Quatre treat work as a burden?  
  
"Whoa, Quatre, what's wrong?" asked Duo Maxwell, his indigo eyes flashing with  
concern and the tiniest spark of fear. It took a lot for the man to get freaked out, but  
the tone of Quatre's voice had sent a chill down his spine.  
  
Taking a seat beside the braided man, Quatre's eyes fell upon each of his friends.   
Duo Maxwell. Chang Wufei. Trowa Barton. Hiiro Yui. Seeing the worry on their faces,  
his expression immediately softened some. This wasn't a social call; it was business,  
which meant that he had to put his feelings on hold for the moment. But he was still  
slightly irritated.  
  
"Sorry for the outburst," he apologized, rubbing the bridge of his nose tiredly. He  
contemplated whether or not to tell them his reasons for not wanting to answer his  
page, but it was really none of their business. At least, not at the moment. "What's  
the emergency?"  
  
He was met by four grim faces and silence, as each one exchanged glances with  
his neighbor, debating who was to give Quatre the news.  
  
Finally Hiiro decided to speak up, since no one else was going to crack. "Relena's  
been kidnapped," he supplied bluntly, left eye twitching slightly.  
  
"What?" Quatre gasped out in disbelief. They had taken the utmost precaution to  
keep the vice foreign minister out of harm's way. And somehow someone had gotten  
through their security? How could anyone outsmart a group of ex-Gundam pilots?   
"What happened?"  
  
"We're still unsure of all the details," Trowa spoke up in that quiet voice of his.   
Years after meeting the others, he was still as soft-spoken as ever, but at least he  
voiced his opinions more often. "We may have a possible lead as to where she was  
taken. Noin booked our plane. We fly out this morning."  
  
"Which means we need to go pack our bags," Wufei added, pushing his chair back  
and standing. "We'll meet back here in one hour."  
  
Nodding mutely, Quatre followed the others out of the room. The ride back to the  
hotel seemed like it took forever, but it was possibly due to the fact that he had sped  
like a Hell's Angel to the meeting and was now calmed down enough to at least drive at  
a semi-normal speed. He really wasn't looking forward to this mission.  
  
It wasn't that he was against Relena; no, that was far from it. Over the years, he  
had grown to deeply respect the pacifist princess of the Cinq Kingdom. She had  
proven more than capable of keeping the idea of peace a reality, and she had  
befriended all five of the ex-Gundam pilots, a feat that would be impossible to other  
people. And now she had gotten kidnapped? The last time she had gotten kidnapped,  
war broke loose over the Earth and the colonies. Quatre hoped with all of his might  
that this would not be a repeat of those events.  
  
Reaching his room, Quatre hesitated slightly before pushing the door open. His  
shoulders slumped in disappointment. A little part of him thought that Usagi might  
have still been there, but that was not the case.  
  
Sighing, he walked over to the tiny closet and pulled out a suitcase, setting it on  
the bed and unzipping it. Going back over to the closet, he began to absently toss all  
of his garments into the suitcase, not to be bothered with actually folding them. He  
unplugged his laptop and placed it in a leather satchel, setting it next to the now zipped  
-up suitcase. Well, that certainly didn't take an hour. What was he going to do to pass  
the time?  
  
Quatre could have slapped himself. Call Usagi! He did, after all, promise he would  
call her tonight. But she needed to know that he would be out of town for a while. He  
practically jumped over the bed and over to the nightstand in his eagerness to hear her  
voice again. What awaited him, however, made his heart stop.  
  
There, on the nightstand, was the notepad and pen, in the exact same spot he had  
left them earlier. The top page was blank. Grabbing the notepad, he frantically began  
flipping through the pages for her number, thinking she might have written it on another  
page. As he reached the last sheet of paper, his fingers could barely hold the tiny  
notepad. He slowly sank onto the bed, the notepad slipping from his fingers and falling  
to the carpet with a slight whisper of pages.  
  
She didn't leave her number.  
  
Not once did it even cross his mind that she wouldn't leave her number. They had  
connected on every level, physically, mentally, emotionally. Of that he was sure. So  
what if they had known each other for less than twenty-four hours? That didn't matter.   
She had mesmerized him with her beauty and her sweetness, and now she was gone.  
  
Did it mean more to him than it did to her? Was she only pretending when she  
wanted him to stay?  
  
That thought pierced his heart as his eyes glazed over in pain. He had never been  
so open with anyone, and look at where it got him. He was so naive! How could he  
have been so stupid to believe that last night had actually meant something, that he  
had found his soulmate?  
  
Frowning in self-disgust and growing anger, Quatre grabbed his suitcase and  
satchel and hastily left the hotel room, slamming the door behind him.  
  
He wasn't there to see the small gust of air from the door blow a sheet of paper out  
from under the nightstand that it had fallen beneath.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
::Peeks out from inside the closet:: Is the coast clear? ::Ducks back in as an onslaught of debris is launched:: Wahhhh!! Plight of the author! I know, I know, the end was a bit.... _________ (fill in word here). I apologize! If you're angry, tell me! Write me! I want to know what you think. Your reviews keep me motivated. Thanks! I love you guys! 


	4. Dial Tone

Aww, I know, I'm so mean! And I'm afraid you're going to think so after this next chapter too, because it's short! Super short, to be more accurate. But I wanted to give you guys something, and I didn't want to combine it with the next part just quite yet (partially because it wouldn't go, partially because it's not finished yet!), so I decided to post a short chapter. So read on and enjoy, and try to keep the anger to a minimum, ok?  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Pick up the phone. Listen to the dial tone. Put the phone back. Five minutes  
later, according to the clock on the wall, pick up the phone again. Check to make sure  
phone is securely plugged in. Check for dial tone again. Yep, still there...  
  
Usagi had been doing this off and on for the past two hours. It was already past  
ten, and she was anxiously awaiting the phone call that Quatre had promised her. So  
far she had received no phone calls, and it was driving her crazy! How long was a  
person supposed to wait, anyway?  
  
Maybe she was crazy. Here she was, a sensible young woman, in her own  
opinion. And what did she do? Spend a (wonderful) night with a man whose name she  
didn't know until this morning, as careless and trusting as she was in her teenage  
days. But what were the results? She spent a (wonderful) night with a man whose  
name she now knew, and she trusted him as if she had known him forever. He was far  
from innocent, that much she could see, but there was this air about him that made her  
want to never leave.  
  
Thus, the waiting.  
  
All day she had thought of nothing else but him, which arose a stir of curiosity in  
her friends when she kept spacing out. But she didn't care. All she did was think  
about hearing his voice again, seeing his face again, feeling his lips again...  
  
The phone rang. Eagerly snatching up the receiver, Usagi answered with a calm,  
"Moshi moshi?" Her face promptly fell, lower lip quivering. "Gomen ne, but you have  
the wrong number." The phone dropped to the floor, forgotten. Usagi sank to the floor  
beside it, ignoring the beeping that now came from the receiver.  
  
He wasn't going to call. He promised he would, but he wouldn't. How could she  
have been so stupid? How could she have believed his words?  
  
But what about her feelings? She had always relied on her heart to read people and  
their emotions. She felt such strong emotions from him. But what if she were wrong?   
What if she were wrong?  
  
Tears pooled in her eyes, falling soundlessly down her cheeks that glowed white in  
the moonlight streaming in through the open window. They continued to fall as she sat  
there on the floor, unmoving.  
  
  
  
When Quatre had returned to the Preventers Office, he was once again angry  
enough to worry his friends. Everyone was curious as to why the blonde was so out of  
character, but none dared question him about it. And so they went to the airport,  
where a private plane was currently taking them to their destination.  
  
Quatre had excused himself to go make a phone call to his office, so the others  
took this opportunity to discuss his behavior.  
  
"Maybe it has something to do with his company?" Wufei suggested quietly,  
scratching his chin in puzzlement.  
  
"No, that can't be it. Quatre has never brought his company's problems to work,  
much less let them affect him emotionally like that," Duo answered insightfully as his  
indigo eyes wavered in concern. He had never seen his companion so upset over  
anything; at least, not since the wars. But those were completely different  
circumstances.  
  
Duo made a good point. Quatre was never one to let one job interfere with the  
other. Then again, he was never one to get angry and then bottle up the reason for  
being so. He had always been fairly open with his problems, and the guys didn't know  
quite how to deal with this new situation.  
  
"Do you want me to talk to him?" Trowa finally asked, breaking the silence. He  
was Quatre's best friend, and if anyone could get the blonde man to open up, it would  
be him. But even he doubted that he would be able to pry any information out of the  
irate man.  
  
"No. Leave him be," Hiiro stated simply, and everyone left it at that. If Quatre  
wanted to talk, they would all be here to help, but they couldn't force the man to open  
up. So for now, they did the only thing they could: focused on the mission at hand.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
They're both taking this rather well, don't you think? ::sees skeptical faces:: Ok, ok, even *I* didn't believe that one. But it'll get better, I promise! It just might take a while... But I'll try to keep the angst low... And in these upcoming chapters, I'm going for something new... I won't tell you exactly what until I post em, and then you can pretty much judge for yourself. Speaking of which, please review! I posted sooner than I was going to because I knew you guys were waiting... That, and the ending of chapter 3 was just plain evil... So tell me what you think! I want to know! Thanks bunches! 


	5. Never Again

I know, it has been a looooooooong time since I updated this fic. But, unlike MSWG, I'm not any kind of chapters ahead in this fic. This is what I have so far. The end, that's all. No more written. So once again, I apologize. With the winter break, hopefully I can crank out the chapters a bit faster. Anyway, here's the next exciting installment!  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Two days. Two days had passed since the plane ride. Two days since any of  
them had slept. They had infiltrated the base where Relena had been taken and had  
pretty much participated in a massacre that had finally ended with their saving the vice  
foreign minister, but at a high mortality rate. Fortunately, all of them had been enemies.   
The ex-pilots all made it out of the fight with minor injuries, for the most part. Wufei  
and Trowa were both unharmed. Duo had a cracked rib, Quatre suffered a minor  
concussion, and Hiiro had managed to get shot in the arm. How that had happened,  
none of them would ever know.  
  
Now Quatre was lying on the uncomfortable bed in his hotel room. They had all  
decided to lay low for a few days before escorting Relena back to the Cinq Kingdom,  
where they would stay and help coordinate a bodyguard system for her.  
  
Even though he knew they had a lot of work ahead of them, Quatre was having  
trouble keeping his mind focused on the task at hand. His thoughts kept falling back to  
the night before they left. Or, more specifically, the night he had realized that he was  
alive. After the wars, he had gone into as normal a routine as possible. And as much  
as he had put on a facade, there was a part of him that was buried, a part that made  
him feel.  
  
That part had been unlocked when he met Usagi. It was amazing enough that he  
had begun to feel again, but it was even more astounding that a woman he had just met  
had been able to get to him so deeply, so completely. And he hated her for it. All  
right, he didn't hate her. He could never hate her. He hated himself for trusting her.   
She had seemed so pure, so innocent, so loving... and then she had left without a  
trace, a note, a goodbye, anything. Why did he have to be so trusting? He should  
have known better! But no, he left his heart wide open, and it had been stomped flat.   
Well, never again.  
  
Sighing dejectedly, Quatre rolled over onto his side, staring blankly out the window  
at the night sky. The blackness was interrupted only by the stark, glowing sliver of a  
crescent moon. For some reason, the moon reminded him of Usagi, the light in the  
darkness.  
  
He growled, covering his head with his pillow. He didn't want to think about her any  
more. It was over and done with, and he would never see her again, simple as that.  
  
  
  
Twenty-four hours. It had been twenty-four hours since that night, that wonderful  
night that she had spent with Quatre. It had been two days since he had said he would  
call but didn't. And for Usagi. Those twenty-four hours had all blurred together.  
  
After picking herself up off the floor of her apartment, she had numbly dialed her  
friend Ami's number and had once again began to cry into the phone. She didn't give  
Ami any details, and Ami didn't ask for any. She had rushed right over with Rei,  
Minako, and Makoto, and they all spent the night at Usagi's apartment.  
  
They were all currently watching a cheesy comedy flick at Makoto's place, but  
Usagi wasn't even trying to concentrate on it. She was too busy berating herself for the  
events that had passed. Why had she let it go that far? Why did she even go and talk  
to him at the club? She never did things like that, never. But she was just drawn to  
him for some reason, and then everything had spiraled from there.  
  
As much as she wanted to forget what had happened, she couldn't. She would  
never forget his face, his blue eyes that had pierced her heart, his touch... Shaking her  
head, she tried to rid her mind of the picture of his naked torso, his biceps flexing as  
his arms had curled around her, his velvety skin smooth against hers... No, she would  
never forget. But she would move on, because she had no other choice. She would  
never see him again.  
  
  
  
Pacing back and forth slowly, Relena Peacecraft was wide awake at such a late  
hour. The others had bid her goodnight around midnight and had gone to their  
respective rooms, leaving her on her own to sort through the events of the two days  
before. She shuddered as she remembered the cold prison cell that had been her  
home for almost twenty-four hours before the ex-pilots had rescued her.  
  
The rescue was not the part that concerned her. What concerned her most was  
the look on Quatre's face when he had been fighting off the enemies. He had looked  
incensed, inhuman, downright maniacal. He had really scared her.  
  
When she had questioned the other four pilots about the incident, they were just as  
lost as she was. She was worried for her dear friend. It was too early to question him  
about it, that she knew. With time, hopefully he would open up to one of them.  
  
Until then, all Relena could do was wait and worry. Sighing, she halted her pacing  
and gracefully fell back onto the hotel bed, staring at the white ceiling. She knew her  
insomnia would only give her more time to wonder about Quatre and his problems.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
I know, that was super short. Like I said, not a lot of time to write. But I will make the next chapter longer, I promise! And I'll see what I can do about bringing down the levels of angst, because I know everyone is really unhappy in the fic right now... I dunno, we'll see what happens. But you know what is motivating? Reviews! That's right, those lovely little comments that I know you guys just love to write after reading a chapter... Please do! They're really encouraging, and I love reading them! 


	6. Bars and Spy Games

I can't even tell you what kind of writer's block I had with this fic! Seriously, it was really bad. I've apparently got this problem with starting new fics and then getting stuck on my old ones. Well, I'm going to try to finish this fic in about 5 or so chapters. I definitely don't want to start another epic fic like MSWG (one is quite enough!!). Anyway, I apologize profusely for being severely unmotivated in my writing/posting. I wrote this entire chapter yesterday. I dunno, I just sat down at the computer and started typing, and this is what I came up with. I hope it's at least semi-interesting. Oh, and do forgive any typos in this chap. I'm in no mood to proofread, so I'll fix em all later. Enjoy!  
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"Give me a rum and coke, babe, and your phone number too."  
  
A melodic laugh bubbled from her throat. "Koji, you're in here almost every night,  
and you always ask for my number. Have I given it to you yet?"  
  
The obviously drunk man thought about this for a few minutes. When she had  
finally given up on getting a response from him, he answered, "No. That's why I keep  
asking." And then he laughed, like he had just put together the most clever statement  
that all mankind had ever heard.  
  
"Sorry to break your heart again, honey, but you're not getting it tonight, either.   
Now, say goodnight and go home in the cab waiting outside for you." She gently pried  
the empty glass out of his unprotesting hands and gave him a gentle smile as he  
stumbled out of the shady bar.  
  
"I don't understand how you put up with him," Mamoru shook his head in partial  
confusion, partial amazement. "You really are a saint."  
  
"Oh yeah, that's me, Saint Usagi," the blonde woman chuckled as she refilled  
Mamoru's soda. Then she sighed, leaning against the sticky counter. "Slow night,"  
she nodded to the almost empty bar.  
  
Following her gaze, Mamoru turned to survey the dimly lit bar. There were a few  
people here and there, but it was pretty empty for a Saturday night. Now, Mamoru was  
in the bar a good three or four nights a week. He wasn't a drinker, by any means. He  
was just there to check up on Usagi. Why she accepted a job at such a dive, he didn't  
know. She despised alcohol after getting drunk in her earlier years by accident. So  
when she called to tell him where she had just found employment, he was more than  
surprised. In fact, shocked stupor summed it up quite nicely.  
  
But she really seemed to enjoy her job. She had to serve drinks, sure, but she  
also got to talk to people, listen to their problems and help on occasion. Helping  
people was what she did best. It was one of the things he loved about her.  
  
Twisting back around to Usagi, he stood. "I hate to run, but I have a lot of patients  
to see in the morning," he explained in an apologetic tone.  
  
"No worries," Usagi smiled up at the taller man. "I'm only on for another hour or so,  
and then I'm going to sleep all day."  
  
"Sounds good. I'll call you later." Mamoru gave her a quick peck on the cheek and  
then left the bar.  
  
Usagi's eyes followed him in his departure. When the door closed noisily behind  
him, she turned her gaze back to the remaining occupants of the bar. Most of them  
were regulars that she knew by name. There were a couple of stragglers; there always  
were, as Usagi quickly found out. Sometimes she preferred this, meeting people and  
then never seeing them again. It showed her that oddball encounters happened all the  
time and that they were nothing to get upset over.  
  
Screwy logic, she knew, but it helped her work through her issues.  
  
As the creak of the door announced another person's arrival, Usagi snapped out of  
her momentary stupor and greeted the person that now occupied the barstool next to  
Mamoru's empty one. "What can I get you?" she asked the dark-haired woman  
pleasantly.  
  
Her words obviously startled the woman, for she almost jumped right out of her  
seat. "Oh. Um, I'll have a club soda, please," she answered quietly, as if she were  
afraid people were listening.  
  
"Coming right up." Grabbing a bottle of club soda and a clean glass, Usagi filled it  
to the top and gave it to the other woman, who accepted it gratefully. Usagi noticed  
that her eyes never left the top of the bar, and that her eyebrows were creased with  
worry. Strange, she looked familiar. And her voice sounded familiar, too.  
  
Then it hit her. She looked familiar because she was familiar! "Are you all right,  
Miss Peacecraft?" Usagi asked the now-brunette in a low voice.  
  
Relena inaudibly gasped. "How did you know?" she asked breathlessly, eyes wide  
and mouth open in shock.  
  
Almost laughing out loud, Usagi answered, "To put it bluntly, a woman as beautiful  
as yourself does not frequently inhabit bars."  
  
"Look who's talking," Relena shot back with a tiny smile, causing Usagi's cheeks  
to pinken slightly. Then her voice took on a serious tone. "You won't say anything, will  
you?"  
  
As Usagi locked eyes with the vice foreign minister, she saw fear, worry, and the  
slightest hint of... trust? Usagi knew what it was like to need someone to trust. Oh,  
she definitely knew. "Say anything? About what? A nice woman I happened to meet  
at the bar where I work? I meet hundreds of people a week."  
  
"Arigato," Relena breathed a sigh of relief as she took a sip of her club soda. Her  
eyes took on a more vibrant cornflower color as she relaxed some. "So... interesting  
place," she threw out casually as she allowed her eyes to wander around the room.  
  
With a chuckle, Usagi shook her head. "I know it doesn't look like much, but it's a  
great place to work. Now, why are you, of all people, in a place like this?"  
  
A guilty look briefly paused on the other woman's features before it passed away.   
"I've been staying with some friends in town, and I needed to get away for a while.   
That's what happens when you are surrounded by males twenty-four hours a day. It's  
enough to drive a person mad!"  
  
"Well then, it's a good thing you stopped in here," Usagi agreed with a smile.   
Hmm, when she had woken up this morning, she never would have imagined that she'd  
be having a conversation with the world peace spokeswoman. It might turn into an  
interesting day, after all.  
  
"Most definitely good," Relena agreed, taking a sip of her club soda. She gave  
Usagi a slight nod. "I'm only here for another couple of days. I'm just taking a much  
-needed break from all of my meetings. You can only travel for so many days in a row  
before it starts making you crazy."  
  
"I can only imagine," Usagi murmured. She had been living in Tokyo for her entire  
life. She had barely made it out of the city, much less traveled outside the country. It  
was pretty sad. In all of her twenty-three years, she had not done anything that she  
could consider great. She had been happy, once, but it only lasted for one night...  
  
"Are you all right?" Relena reiterated the question that had been asked of her only  
moments before. The blonde woman in front of her had this look on her face. Wistful,  
almost sad.  
  
"What? Oh. I'm fine. Sorry about that," Usagi chuckled nervously, grabbing a rag  
and wiping the counter. She had been doing that a lot lately, spacing out. Not to  
mention the fact that she had been thinking more and more about what had become of  
her life. Well, it was about time she stopped. Bitterness never was a good shade on  
her, anyway.  
  
The door slammed open, startling both women. In the doorway stood two men,  
both tall, dark and handsome. Their eyes scanned the room before landing on Relena,  
and they started across the bar over to her.  
  
"Do you know them, or should I call for help?" Usagi asked in a low voice, eyeing  
the two approaching men suspiciously.  
  
"You said you'd only be gone for fifteen minutes," said the shorter of the two men  
as he addressed Relena. He tapped his watch for emphasis. The other man merely  
stood there watching, nodding his head in silent agreement with his comrade.  
  
"I know, but I was having a nice conversation with..." Relena's voice trailed off when  
she realized that the blonde woman had never formally introduced herself. She glanced  
at her in puzzlement.  
  
"Tsukino Usagi," Usagi offered in the silence. "A pleasure." Even as she said this,  
she was still debating the pleasant aspect of this meeting. The talking man was  
glaring at her, while the other one remained impassive. "Your friends?" she nodded at  
the men.  
  
"That would be two of them. Usagi, this is Hiiro Yui and Trowa Barton."  
  
At the introduction, Hiiro scowled. Since when did Relena give their names to total  
strangers? And a bartender, at that! "Come on, Relena. It's time to get back to the  
mansion." He grabbed her hand and pulled her gently off the barstool.  
  
"Wait." Relena tugged her hand back as she turned to Usagi. "Thank you," she  
said with genuine gratefulness.  
  
"Absolutely. Enjoy the rest of your vacation."  
  
With one last scowl, Hiiro once again took Relena's hand and led her out of the  
bar. Just before the door closed, Trowa stuck his head back in and called out to Usagi,  
"Nice meeting you." And then he was gone.  
  
Usagi shook her head. What an interesting bunch. No wonder Relena needed to  
get away for a while! She could only imagine what the woman's other friends were like.  
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"You did what?!" a voice screeched loudly throughout the room.  
  
"Calm down, Wufei. It's not a big deal," Relena insisted as she tried to curb the  
rantings of the severely pissed off Chinese man.  
  
"Not a big deal?" His already black eyes turned darker at this statement. "You  
asked us to protect you. Hell; we're friends even! And then you go and talk to  
complete strangers? In a bar, no less!"  
  
While he said nothing, Hiiro stood nearby, listening to the entire conversation.   
Personally, he agreed with Wufei. If they wanted the entire city to know that Relena  
Peacecraft was in town, they would have posted their arrival flight on a billboard.  
  
"I wasn't talking to strangers," Relena shot back in annoyance. "I was talking to  
someONE, who happened to have recognized me. What was I supposed to do, deny  
her assumptions?"  
  
"Yes!"  
  
"Well, I didn't, sorry. And I really don't think she's one to alert the media. She  
didn't seem like that kind of person."  
  
"Oh, because you and her became such good friends in your five-minute  
conversation!"  
  
"Ok, that's it!" Duo boomed out. He had been silently watching the heated  
exchange of words, and frankly, he was quite sick of the bickering. "Now, here's what  
we're going to do. For the next couple of days, we're going to keep an eye on our new  
bartending friend. That way, we can see if she tells anyone that Relena is here."  
  
"That's not a bad idea," Quatre put in quietly from his seat on the couch. Their  
number one concern was Relena's safety. While he never did enjoy spying on people,  
sometimes it was just necessary. "Who wants to take the first shift?"  
  
"I'll do it," Duo volunteered, making all eyes look over to him in suspicion. Noticing  
this, he said defensively, "No, I'm not going to drink! I just want to get out of the house  
for a while!"  
  
"Fine then," Hiiro gave in grudgingly, knowing that just killing the woman was out of  
the question. The next best thing was keeping tabs on her whereabouts.  
  
"Great. I'll see you later," Duo called as he left the mansion.  
  
That woman had better not talk to anyone, if she knew what was good for her, Hiiro  
thought darkly.  
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This fic seems to have taken a different turn from where I originally had it going... However, I think this one would probly be better. Less long-winded and angsty. I dunno, that could be a good thing or a bad thing. We'll see. Anyway, what did you think? I'm trying to bring everyone together so the plot can progress. I hope I succeeded. Please review! It helps keep me motivated. Not just for this fic, but for all of em. I love you guys! 


	7. First Watch

I apologize profusely for not updating in a good... three months. Any of you who have ever suffered severe writer's block know what kind of torment I've been going through. But, it looks like I busted the hell out of the wall because, look! A new chapter! Granted, it's not very long, but it's still a new chapter! And I started chapter eight last night, so hopefully that'll write itself. We'll see. Anyway, without further ado, here's the long-awaited chapter seven!  
  
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Sighing for the umpteenth time in a half hour, Duo settled back in the seat of their rented Explorer and watched the door to the seedy bar he had been directed to. So far a handful of people had left, but none of them fit the short, blonde, and beautiful description he had received from Trowa. He had to rely on his taller friend's help since all Hiiro had offered up was that she looked 'suspicious.' If he had gone on that alone, Duo would have been following every last person in the damned place! And then he definitely would have had to stop in for a drink.  
  
Rubbing his eyes tiredly, Duo wondered why he had volunteered for the first watch. He wondered why anyone in their right minds would want to work at a bar. He wondered when this damned woman was going to get off of work so he could have a change of scenery when he followed her.  
  
With all of his inner ranting, he almost missed the tiny blonde's exit as she slipped out the door and climbed into a tiny black sports car of some kind. Duo couldn't identify what it was; he never was one for cars. Give him Gundams any day.  
  
Staying a good distance behind her, Duo maneuvered his car through the late night traffic. He parked on the side of the road when she pulled in front of what looked like a shrine. It wasn't until she got out of her car that he got a good look at her. Trowa's description had been dead on: she was gorgeous! Duo briefly wondered if it were okay to ask out the subject of an investigation, but decided against it. The last thing he needed was to be ground up into gunpowder by Hiiro.  
  
Turning his attention back on the matter at hand, Duo watched as Usagi climbed the tower of steps and was greeted by a raven-haired woman, who was gorgeous as well. Damnit! This assignment was so cruel. Having to watch two hot women from afar was not something he was accustomed to doing. The only thing that kept him in the car was the fact that she might very well be out to hurt Relena.  
  
Adjusting the seat to a slightly reclined position, Duo made himself comfortable for a long wait ahead of him.  
  
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Usagi usually crashed at Rei's after working her late night to early morning shifts, so Rei was surprised when the blonde had shown up at the shrine and asked if she could stay the night. Never one to deny her best friend anything, Rei complied and led Usagi to her usual room.  
  
It must have been a rough day for Usagi, Rei mused. She had looked exhausted, even though her shift had ended at midnight. Usagi was usually a night person and could stay up for twenty-four hours at a time, but not lately. It seemed that everything had spun in a downward spiral since that night six months ago when Usagi had called Ami in a fit of tears. All they had learned about that night was that some evil man had broken her heart, and it had changed her.  
  
Usagi had always been easygoing and embraced the world with her whole heart. Now she was guarded, like there was a veil between her and the rest of the population. It wasn't so much extended towards her friends, but Rei still detected the faintest of distances between their once closeness, and it tore her up inside. All she wanted was for Usagi to be happy like she once was, but she just didn't know what she could do.  
  
Brushing her bangs off her forehead in weariness, Rei watched Usagi sleep from a chair at the foot of the bed. She would take care of her friend, as long as she needed it.  
  
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All of the silence was driving Duo crazy! He had been sitting in the car for five hours, and nothing was happening. No movement from anything, save the trees, and they weren't exactly fun to watch. He was so bored!  
  
Grabbing the cell phone from his jacket pocket, he dialed the number to Quatre's mansion, where they were currently staying. After what seemed like forever, someone finally picked up.  
  
"Hello?" asked Quatre in a sleepy voice.  
  
"Quatre, get me the hell out of here!" Duo growled into the phone.  
  
"Duo? What's going on?" Quatre was instantly alert.  
  
"She hasn't left this place for four hours! She must be sleeping. I'm going to be sleeping soon if I don't get the hell out of here!"  
  
"All right, all right. Hold on."  
  
Duo could hear other voices in the background now. No doubt they were arguing over his competence, but he was too tired to care. All he wanted was to sink into his bed and sleep for a good day and a half.  
  
"Duo?" Quatre came back on the line. "Where are you now?"  
  
"In front of the Hikawa shrine. It's about ten minutes' walk from the mansion."  
  
"I know where it is. Hiiro and Trowa are going to take over." Lowering his voice, Quatre told Duo, "I suggested Wufei go, but he flat-out refused to spend any of his precious time following after a stupid woman."  
  
Duo snorted. "Some protector he is. I'll give him flack about it later."  
  
Chuckling, Quatre said, "Can't wait to see that. Now, do you think you can walk home without falling asleep in the middle of the road?"  
  
"Sure. No problem. Just make it soon."  
  
"They're on their way," Quatre promised.  
  
"Better be," Duo growled as he put his phone away. "Damn gorgeous woman," he muttered as he impatiently waited to be relieved of his watch.  
  
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This fic is taking quite a different turn than where I originally planned it to go. Then again, I was only thinking like fic would be like three or four chapters long, so yeah, things change. But I do have ideas on where this is leading, so hopefully that'll keep the dreaded block at bay.  
  
I want to thank everyone who is still reading this after my loooooooong hiatus, and I promise that I'll get the next chapter out as soon as I possibly can. I love you guys! Please keep reading and reviewing! Oh, and if you want to know when this is updated, leave me your e-mail addy. 


	8. Discretion is Advised

Hey look, it was only a little after a week for this update! Aren't you proud? Anyway, like I said before, this fic is really taking on a mind of its own, which is a good thing, I think. Makes things more interesting. I hope you like this chapter. Read on and enjoy!  
  
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It was another four hours before Hiiro and Trowa saw Usagi emerge from the shrine. They watched as she hugged another woman and then took off in her car. Discretely following, they pulled into the parking lot of a nearby café. Apparently Usagi was going for breakfast.  
  
After sitting silently in the car for a few minutes, Trowa finally spoke. "We might learn more if we talk to her."  
  
"What do you mean?" Hiiro asked gruffly, arms crossed in front of him.  
  
"Well, we can go and 'accidentally' run into her. We may be able to pry some information from her, don't you think?" In all reality, this was true. If anyone had anything to say, Hiiro would be the one to extract that information from them. And Trowa would be there to keep him in check. But he did have to admit that his reasoning wasn't entirely one-sided. His stomach had started growling an hour earlier, and he really wanted something to eat.  
  
Hiiro thought about the proposal for a moment before finally answering, "Fine. But we're not staying long."  
  
Trowa smiled to himself as he got out of the car and followed Hiiro into the café. Glancing around, he was surprised at just how many people were up and about at eight in the morning. It took him a minute to spot Usagi in the back, sitting in a booth by herself. Nodding in her direction Hiiro, Trowa began walking towards her.  
  
As a shadow fell over her, Usagi glanced up from swirling her coffee. A look of surprise briefly passed over her face. "Hiiro and Trowa, right?" she asked uncertainly.  
  
"Right," Trowa smiled at her. "How are you this morning, "Miss Tsukino?"  
  
"Usagi, please. And I'm good, thank you for asking. Would you like to join me for breakfast?" she offered.  
  
Before Hiiro could oppose, Trowa answered, "Of course we will." He slid into the booth across from her, a disgruntled Hiiro sliding in next to him. "So, Usagi, just get off from work?" he asked conversationally.  
  
"Oh, no, I've been off since midnight. Just woke up." She grinned sheepishly, taking a sip from her coffee. "Been extra tired lately."  
  
"Working too much?" Trowa could be sympathetic to that. It seemed that all the guys ever did was work. Even on their downtime, here they were, working. Of course, this was for the protection of a friend and esteemed world leader, so it was for a just cause.  
  
Usagi shook her head. "More like stress, of the emotional variety."  
  
At this, Hiiro let out an exasperated sigh. He had better things to do than sit here and listen to a girl whine about her emotions. If he wanted to hear about clothes and hair and how exasperating the opposite sex was at the present moment, he would listen to Duo. And that was not going to happen.  
  
Trowa elbowed Hiiro in the side, hard, which earned him a patented death glare. To Usagi he said, "Don't mind him. He didn't have any toys as a child."  
  
"Do guns count?" Hiiro muttered to himself, but the comment didn't go unnoticed by Usagi. She narrowed her eyes at him ever so slightly before changing the subject.  
  
As the waitress came by, they all ordered their breakfast. "Your usual, Usagi?" asked the smiling redhead.  
  
"Of course, Unazuki, arigato," Usagi answered, returning the smile.  
  
They continued talking, mostly about general topics such as books and current events. Well, Usagi and Trowa talked, while Hiiro just glowered in his seat. Usagi wondered why he even bothered staying if he didn't want to be there. She was just about to ask him that when Trowa interrupted their brief silence.  
  
"Usagi, how did you recognize Miss Relena?" His tone was very low so as not to be heard by foreign ears, and his expression was serious. Dead serious.  
  
At once Usagi knew that this was the reason they had stopped by in the first place. They wanted to know if she would leak any information to the press, or probably if she herself was an assassin after the pacifist princess. She wanted to burst out laughing. Actually, she really wanted to slug both of them, Hiiro especially, because now his steely gaze was on her, almost like he was trying to frighten her into answering.  
  
"I'm not after her. I don't have any lurking vendetta with the knowledge of her being in town." Usagi said each word slowly, in a tone that matched Trowa's, but hers was laced with bridled anger. "Now, if you'll excuse me, gentlemen, I'll take my leave." She stood, tossing a couple of bills on the table before storming out of the café.  
  
Only pausing enough to exchange bewildered (or, in Hiiro's case, smug) glances, the two were on their feet and out the door. They watched as the blonde stomped down the sidewalk, abandoning her car in the parking lot. Even from a distance, they could see her gesturing angrily, no doubt muttering under her breath. With a slight nod in her direction, Trowa and Hiiro began their mission on foot.  
  
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Of all the nerve! Usagi was positively fuming. Never in her entire life had she been accused of wanting to take advantage of or physically harm anyone, and here she was, being accused of each in one swift punch!  
  
Although, she realized that she really didn't blame them. They were, after all, only doing their jobs in trying to protect Miss Peacecraft. But still, you'd think they would find a more direct approach of going about accusing people. The situation was almost enough to make her laugh. Almost.  
  
Too wrapped up in her own thoughts, Usagi didn't notice that her path was blocked until she ran into something. "Ouch!" she cried as she stumbled back. A hand reached out and steadied her before she could fall, and she found herself staring into large indigo eyes. Wait a second, he looked familiar...  
  
"Weren't you sitting in a car outside the club last night?" Usagi asked slowly. When a brief look of surprise and guilt flitted across his face, she put two and two together, and once again her temper began to flare. "You're with them, aren't you!" she exclaimed, poking a finger at his chest accusingly. Not waiting for an answer, she rambled on. "Kami, can't I go anywhere without being followed? You guys are everywhere!" She pushed past him and continued on down the sidewalk.  
  
As Hiiro and Trowa came jogging up to him, Duo scratched his head and stared after the girl. "A bit emotional, isn't she?" he asked dumbly.  
  
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Leave it to the G-boys to screw everything up once again... No wonder they've been single for so long! They just don't know how to act around women (or people, for that matter). Well, I'm thinking next chapter, Usagi is going to meet up with Quatre for the first time in six months... I don't quite know how I'm going to write it, but I started working on a scene yesterday, so we'll see. Anyway, please review! Reviews make me happy, and a happy author is a productive author. I love you guys! 


	9. We Meet Again

Took me a little longer than anticipated to get this chapter out. I was shooting for the weekend, but since ff was being extremely stupid, I didn't get to. So I apologize! I also want to say that the next chap may take a little while in getting out too. I have much going on right now. I'm going to summer school, and I'm working, and the homework is atrocious. Not to mention I'm going out of town to see Sugar Ray and Matchbox 20 this Thursday. And on Saturday the fifth HP book comes out, so I'll be spending all of my free time reading. So I apologize. But I'll work on it when I can, I promise! I know, long a/n. I'll shut up now. Read on and enjoy!  
  
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Sitting in the shade of a large cherry blossom tree, Usagi breathed slowly in an attempt to calm herself down. She really wasn't one for having hysterical outbursts like that, especially twice in one day, especially in front of total strangers! Then again, she'd never quite been in a situation like this before.  
  
Had they been tailing her ever since Miss Peacecraft had left the bar that evening? She wouldn't be surprised if they had. After all, they did have the safety of their charge on their minds. But honestly! Did Usagi really look like the kind of person who would hurt another?  
  
Well, there went another winning argument. Usagi had done a lot of things that hadn't been characteristic of herself, and she wasn't quite thinking of her accidental run-in with Miss Peacecraft. She had brought this long spiral of chaos on herself, and it all started at that damned club that night. Ever since then, she had been changed.  
  
Of course, who wouldn't be after something like that? It wasn't every day that someone met their soulmate. And it wasn't every day that someone was left by said soulmate, either. Usagi laughed bitterly. She wondered why she even referred to Quatre as her soulmate, after what he had done. Soulmates don't up and go, do they? They aren't the love-em-and-leave-em types. So obviously Quatre wasn't her soulmate.  
  
Even so much time later, it was hard for Usagi to admit that. She hadn't even said the words aloud. She couldn't bring herself to.  
  
Heaving a frustrated sigh, she closed her eyes and waited patiently for some kind of sense to come to her life.  
  
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It was quite hilarious, really. A woman was getting the better of the Gundam pilots. Quatre couldn't help but chuckle. He had never met the woman, and he already liked her. Cutting off the chuckle abruptly, a wave of guilt washed over him. When they had had the meeting over Relena's safety last night, he hadn't been paying as close attention as he should have. In all reality, he had been paying almost none, he forced himself to admit.  
  
Letting his constant bad mood get the better of him, Quatre had only pretended to be listening as the others went on about their plan to follow the bartender. The only thing he remembered hearing was beautiful, blonde, and suspicious, which was hardly enough information to go on.  
  
Making his way past a group of laughing kids, Quatre wondered when was the last time he had laughed, truly laughed. It had been a while. It had been a long while, and he was pretty sure he could pinpoint the day it all stopped. Ironically, it was the best day of his life.  
  
But he had promised himself long ago that he wouldn't linger on thoughts of the golden-haired goddess that had stolen his heart, his happiness, his sanity. No, he could function without her. He could get on with his life.  
  
Except that he couldn't. And he hadn't. Who was he trying to fool, anyway? He missed her. She had disappeared without a trace, without so much as a reason, and he still longed to see her beautiful face, to hear her melodic voice again.  
  
Crossing the street, Quatre entered through the large iron gates of the park, where he was meeting his three friends. After receiving a phone call from an exasperated Duo with Trowa and Hiiro arguing in the background, Quatre had decided that maybe it was time he stepped up and continued on with their mission. By the sound of it, the other three were having no luck at all.  
  
He spotted the trio standing near a water fountain. As he approached, Duo gave him a massive grin. "I never thought I could be so happy to see you!" he exclaimed.  
  
"Gee, what a heartfelt compliment," Quatre replied dryly. "So, any progress?" he asked the other two.  
  
"None," Trowa shook his head as Hiiro didn't offer an answer. "Although, if I may put in, she doesn't quite strike me as a vindictive, petty person."  
  
"Well, we're not going on your gut feelings," Hiiro growled impatiently. "We're going to go on his." He jerked his thumb at Quatre, who stared at him in puzzlement for a moment before a wave of clarity hit him.  
  
"You want me to use my empathic skills when I talk to her, to see if she's a threat?" he observed, to which he received a nod. Of course. Why didn't he think of that? Oh, that's right. He wasn't focused on the mission last night. Well, it was a pretty good idea. "All right. Where is she?"  
  
"Behind that tree, over there," Trowa pointed across a large grassy field where one lone cherry tree was planted.  
  
"Here I go, then."  
  
"Good luck, man," Duo called out as Quatre began his trek across the field.  
  
For some reason, those words felt like a weight on Quatre's shoulders. He knew this was a mission, but there were very few times when his empathic abilities ever failed him. He was like a walking lie detector. What he once considered a burden was now one of his strengths. Or, at least, it used to be. He wasn't so sure anymore.  
  
But that wasn't the issue at hand. He needed to concentrate on the mission, which was the protection of Miss Relena. What excuse could he use to talk to this woman? He could ask her for the time. No, too clichéd. The weather? That would be enough to put him to sleep, so he thought not. So what could be a good icebreaker?  
  
Gold.  
  
He saw a long stream of golden hair as he got closer to the tree. It was a brilliant color, like it was soaking up the sunrays. The color reminded him of... no, he wouldn't start thinking about that now.  
  
From his vantage point, he could see that the woman not only had beautiful hair, but it was also long, so long that it pooled on the ground beside her. Her frame was tiny, and he briefly wondered how she could possibly hold so much hair without toppling over. Well, that would be an interesting icebreaker.  
  
The closer he got, the more she reminded him of the woman whom had turned his life upside down. There were so many resemblances that it was uncanny. He wondered if she were perhaps a relative, or maybe that she had a double running around Tokyo somewhere. He absolutely refused to allow himself to hope that it was her.  
  
But as he closed in on her, he couldn't push the thoughts out of his mind. He was even starting to grow a bit nervous, which was ridiculous since he'd never met this woman. And he even forgot to ask the guys her name!  
  
But he didn't need to. Standing ten feet off to her right, he knew it.  
  
Usagi.  
  
Of all the cruel jokes that could be played on him, this was the worst. For a second he thought he was hallucinating, but a hallucination could never look that good. It was her, in the flesh, in front of him. She was sitting with her eyes closed, very much unaware of his presence.  
  
He took a few steps forward, then stopped again, biting his lip. Could he do this? Could he go talk to her, especially after what had happened between them, and how she had just left him? His heart was pounding wildly in his chest as a pang of fear mingled with his nervousness. He knew he had to talk to her.  
  
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Usagi didn't know how long she had been sitting there. It could have been minutes, hours, days, for all she knew. She was just trying to block out the rampant thoughts that refused to leave her head.  
  
As a shadow passed over her, she inwardly groaned. Wasn't it enough that she had been stalked since last night? And now those damned guys wanted to interrupt her when she was trying to calm down? "Will you please just leave me alone!" she growled.  
  
Looking up at the person standing next to her, Usagi's eyes widened in disbelief. "Quatre?" she croaked out.  
  
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How's that for a mean place to end it? Technically, I did say that they would meet again in this chapter, and they did! I didn't say I would give you more than that. I'm still working on that part. It's slowly but surely coming along. I just wanted to give some more insight as to how each was feeling. Next chapter's gonna be interesting... Please review! I love hearing from you guys, I absolutely do. And I appreciate it more than you know. Thanks! 


	10. That Blasted Paper

Woohoo, I'm finally updating! Thanks to everyone who read/reviewed the last chapter. Chapter ten was one of the hardest to write, let me tell you. I had to make their reunion believable, emotional, and all that other stuff. I couldn't very well rush through it and make it sound all horrible, could I? Well, I could have, but what fun is that? I ended up rewriting the end of this chapter a good four times, so hopefully you'll like it.  
  
My Matchbox 20 concert last week was really awesome. Best concert I've ever been to, and I've been to a nice handful of concerts. Speaking of awesome, is anyone else reading the fifth HP book? I was thoroughly blown away by the ending! The death really depressed me... I don't want to wait another three years for the next book, wah! Ok, anyway, I'll shut up now. Read on and enjoy!  
  
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"I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to--" Quatre spun on his heel and hurried off. He knew he shouldn't have gone over there! He should have just turned back around and told the guys he wasn't feeling well, or that he needed to head to the office, or--  
  
"Wait."  
  
It wasn't a command, or a plea. The word was neutral, and it was enough to halt Quatre's stride. He took a couple of deep breaths before turning and walking back over.  
  
When he stood next to her once again, he couldn't quite make himself speak. He was relieved when she wordlessly offered him a seat by gesturing to the grass beside her. It seemed that he wasn't the only one who was nervous, and he was all the more happy for it.  
  
Now that he was seated, she still didn't talk, and neither did he. They just sat there in silence, avoiding each other's gazes.  
  
Usagi couldn't quite believe that he was in front of her. When she had opened her eyes and saw Quatre, of all people in this world, she could have sworn that her heart stopped then and there. She never expected to see him again; she hadn't wanted to see him again. Hell, who was she kidding? She was so ecstatic right now that she could have cried!  
  
But she still didn't know what to say, and the fact that he was sitting next to her, within arm's reach to where she could actually touch him with her hands, well... It didn't do much for her already jumbled nerves.   
  
Giving him a sidelong glance, she could see that he was nervously playing with the hem of his pants. He was staring at the grass in front of him, not daring to look up.  
  
Oh, this was ridiculous! They hadn't seen each other in six months, and neither one of them were saying anything. Looks like she would be the one to break the ice between them.  
  
"How have you been?"  
  
The soft words startled Quatre, making him jump. He glanced over at Usagi and instantly regretted it. Her eyes were dark, darker than he remembered them, like they were clouded with something. What, he didn't quite know. But he did recognize a hint of shock, and he could feel the waves of nervousness radiating off of her. There was something else there, but he couldn't quite make it out...  
  
Focusing all of his empathic energy on her, he completely forgot to answer Usagi's question. She stared at him quizzically, awaiting a reply. His eyes were focused on her, but somehow she felt like he were looking straight through her. It was unnerving, to say the least. "Quatre?" Still no answer. "Quatre?" she tried again, gently touching his arm.  
  
At the contact of skin, he blinked and jerked his arm away at lightning speed.  
  
"I'm sorry," Usagi muttered quickly, hurt at the recoil. Obviously he didn't want to talk. He probably felt obligated to come and say hello when he had seen her sitting there. He didn't want to sit down and catch up with her. She couldn't blame him.  
  
Actually, she could. And she did! This entire situation was his fault. He was the one that left without so much as a goodbye, so why was she apologizing to him? Hell, why was she even talking to him?!? "So, you never answered my question," she spoke up again, although there was a coldness now in her tone.  
  
"Question? Oh," Quatre's cheeks flushed slightly. "I've been good. Mostly working." And working now, he wanted to tell her. She was the person who was possibly after Miss Relena? He knew quite rightly that she wasn't. Didn't know how he knew, but he did. So that settled that little dilemma. Now for the one facing him... "So what about yourself?"  
  
"Me? I've also been working most days."  
  
"Where do you work?" he asked curiously.  
  
"I bartend at a place downtown."  
  
The answer astonished Quatre. She worked at a bar? Out of any of the occupations she could have held, he never would have guessed bartender to be her profession of choice. "But I thought you didn't drink," he said uncertainly, eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Isn't that was she had said?  
  
"I don't," Usagi answered, mystified that he had remembered that little detail.   
  
Shrugging it aside, she continued. "I like the atmosphere. Meet all kinds of interesting people." Usually, she added silently.  
  
Quatre nodded absently. She was different from what he remembered. He never would have pictured her working in a bar. Did he do that to her? No, maybe she really did like it there. Hell, maybe she had been working there when he met her. But somehow he had the distinct feeling that she hadn't. So what changed? He wanted to ask but was pretty sure he wouldn't get an answer. And if he did get one, it probably wouldn't be pleasant.  
  
Usagi watched him, not letting any detail slip past her. From the way his eyes glossed over just briefly at her answer, the way he ever so slightly chewed on his bottom lip, hands clenching for the shortest of seconds before relaxing again... and all of these seemingly insignificant gestures confused her to no end. Why was he so interested, concerned even, with her answer? He should care. And he didn't, she argued with herself. He didn't care, not a bit. And that thought started to annoy her even more than she had been to begin with.  
  
Trying to steer the conversation back on level ground, Quatre asked casually, "So, how is life treating you?"  
  
"Oh, wonderful, just plain ducky," Usagi bit back sarcastically. Honestly, did he have no shame? He royally mucked up her life and then had the nerve to ask her how she was doing? "I usually thoroughly enjoy being thrown for a loop and having all things known to me turn upside down and stay that way, all because of a one-night stand!" She finished this in a shout, jumping to her feet.  
  
"Now wait a minute," Quatre growled, now standing to face her. "I don't know what you're insinuating, but you had better choose your words carefully."  
  
"Oh, I think the words I chose are perfectly suited for the situation," Usagi shot back venomously, hands balling into fists. She could feel all the suppressed hurt and anger now boiling, coursing through her veins and flooding her head with memories, and she didn't like it one bit. But she was determined to have her say. "Of course you don't like my wording, because it shows just how careless and cruel you are!"  
  
"I believe you've got it the other way around there!" Quatre's voice rose dangerously high as he tried desperately to keep his anger in check. "I wasn't the only one there that night. If I recall, you were also present."  
  
"Oh, so you're blaming this on me!" Usagi was fuming now. He was right; she had been there. She had been there, and she was witness to just how he played his games. All sweet and vulnerable one minute, and cold and callous the next. She was better off without him. "I'm not going to stand here and listen to this."  
  
"Neither am I!" Turning on his heel, Quatre began to stalk off.  
  
"I'm glad you never called me," Usagi said loudly to his retreating form.  
  
"It's hard to call someone without a phone number," Quatre threw over his shoulder as he kept walking.  
  
"But... I left my number."  
  
The words were spoken so softly that Quatre wasn't sure he had heard them. But they froze him in midstep, his entire body suddenly heavy with the weight of confusion. "What?"  
  
"My number. You had it."  
  
Whirling around suddenly, Quatre accused, "You never left it. I didn't have your number." He didn't know why he was getting so angry all of a sudden. It was just easier to be angry than to try and figure out what exactly was going on.  
  
"I did so leave it! On the nightstand right by the bed," Usagi answered in a huff.  
  
"When I came back, I didn't see any number. I checked through the notepad and didn't see it." He had even gone back that night on the plane, checking and rechecking just in case he had looked over it, but he hadn't.  
  
"I didn't write it on the notepad. I pulled off a sheet of paper and..." As she said this, a thought flitted across her brain as tiny alarms started going off. No, it couldn't have. It was him. He... But it did make sense... And he didn't seem like the type to... "Oh, no," she whispered, hand covering her mouth.  
  
"What? What is it?" He was by her side in a minute, gazing at the shocked blonde worriedly. He was still confused.  
  
"The paper. It must have... fallen off the table somehow," she spoke up, voice barely above a whisper. She could hardly breathe. Now that she thought about it, it was the most plausible thing that could have happened. She honestly believed that he had every intention of calling her, and he did. But, like he said, it had been difficult without the number.  
  
Quatre opened his mouth to speak, but no sound came out. He knew it was true. He could feel it, both through his empathic waves from her and deep in his own heart. How did things get so messed up so fast? He glanced over at Usagi, who looked both relieved and miserable at the same time. It wasn't her fault. It was neither of their faults. "I'm sorry," he apologized, raising a hand to her shoulder briefly.  
  
Meeting his gaze, Usagi answered quietly, 'Me too." She gave a hollow laugh. "Looks like both of us decided to think the worst instead of looking for a good explanation."  
  
That's what he got for never trusting people. Half a year's worth of misery. Granted, he had been too busy with the guys and Relena to come back and search for her, but he could have made some sort of effort. Oh well, no use dwelling in the past now. They had cleared everything up, and that was what mattered.  
  
But where do they go from here? He knew what he wanted, and he wanted her. But it had been six months, six long months of self-doubt and bitterness on both sides that would take a while to wade through. Would they be able to do it? Would she even want to?  
  
A wave of nervousness swelled over Quatre as he said quietly, "I missed you."  
  
Usagi looked startled at the words, mostly because they were echoing her own thoughts. Kami, how she had missed him. She had never spent so little time with a person and become so attached. There was just something about him that made her want to stay with him forever. She could sense a lost innocence, like that of a child having to grow up way too soon. There was pain and bitterness, both at the world and himself. The strongest emotion she sensed was this distance that he had created from himself and the world, like he was afraid to live in it. She knew how that felt. It was almost like looking at a male version of herself; the emotions were mirrored in her own soul.  
  
And she knew how much it hurt, how horrible it was to be in the world and yet be so detached, both from everything and everyone. She had been that way for too long, and so had he.  
  
"I missed you, too," she croaked out, flinging herself into his arms and sobbing into his shoulder.  
  
Pulling her more tightly into the embrace, Quatre rested his chin gently on the top of her head.  
  
They stood there in each other's arms, weeping silently under the shade of the cherry blossom tree.  
  
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And they reunite! I hope it was believable, emotional, and all that other stuff? I tried, I really did. I haven't started the next chapter yet, because I'm sorting options in my head on where this fic should be going. But I will start writing it this week, I promise. It may be towards the end of the week, though, since this is my last week of summer school, and I'm going to be a busy little bee with all of my work. But after that, I'll have copious amounts of free time (in-between work) to write!  
  
Please review! Reviews mean the world to me. And I need one more to hit 200! Someone push the number over the edge, please! I love you guys, I honestly do. 


	11. Back in the Loop

Sorry it took me a little while to get this out. But I finished up summer school (with A's in both Ethics and Psych of Personality, yay!), so I had some more free time to write. Except I had writer's block for about a week... but I sat at the comp last night and wrote the majority of this chapter. Let me tell you, after getting further into this chapter, I had every intention of this being the last one. I almost ended it with their reunion, but then I figured I had to add in the others' reactions. And then, at the end, I figured I had to introduce Quatre to the girls... so the next chapter may be the last chapter! I don't know yet. But there's at least one more!  
  
I was actually going to post this chapter this evening, but since hurricane Claudette will be sending loads of bad weather our way (none yet, but we're supposed to have rain that could flood from two to six feet, starting in about an hour... I love living in a coastal city.), I decided to post this now just in case we lose power later. I hope I did this chapter justice. Read on and enjoy!  
  
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A low rumbling resounded, breaking the silence that had fallen between the guys. "Hehe, guess I'm hungry," Duo chuckled sheepishly as he rubbed his stomach. This earned him two looks of irritation, which immediately halted his chuckling. He couldn't help it. They had been sitting there for a while, and he didn't get to eat breakfast that morning. Maybe if he made a quick run to the park vendor... But no, Trowa and Hiiro wouldn't let him. So he settled back onto the bench to wait some more.  
  
"I thought Quatre was supposed to be such a great empath," Duo grumbled in irritation. "What's taking him so long?"  
  
That was a stupid question to the other two. Of course Quatre was a great empath! But that's not to say that the same thought hadn't crossed their minds for the briefest of seconds... Usually Quatre had a fairly easy time reading people.  
  
Exchanging a look with Hiiro, Trowa stood and began slowly walking down the path so he would be able to see what was happening behind the tree. Catching a glimpse of clothing, he walked a bit farther to the right and almost tripped over his own feet. He blinked. Then he blinked again. A hand reached up and pushed the long wisp of bangs out of his face so both eyes could see.  
  
Watching Trowa's odd reaction, Duo jogged immediately over to where his taller friend was standing. Eyes widening to an impossibly large size, Duo exclaimed indignantly, "Hey! I thought you said we weren't supposed to hit on the suspect!"  
  
These words brought Hiiro over there in less than half a second. His eyes were narrowed as he observed the two blondes in their intimate embrace. Then he turned around and said simply, "Quatre will explain later. Let's go."  
  
"But--"  
  
"Let's. Go."  
  
Duo didn't need to be told again. With one last glance at their friend, the trio made their way out of the park.  
  
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After standing there for a while, Quatre finally pulled away from the embrace only enough for them to talk. Usagi," he murmured slowly, enjoying the sound of her name on his tongue once again. He knew he had missed her, but he never realized how much until now.   
  
She looked up at him, sapphire meeting ocean. She was still having trouble believing this, that he was here, even though she was currently resting in his arms. After that huge misunderstanding that had caused both of them so much pain, she didn't want to let him go. A part of her, the irrational part, still feared that he might disappear again if she let him go, and she didn't think she would be able to stand that again.  
  
"I have a confession to make," Quatre's words broke through her thoughts, bringing her attention back to him. His eyes were apologetic. "I was actually sent over here to spy on you."  
  
What? To spy? Usagi's mind whirled around this. Oh. Oh! "You're guarding Miss Peacecraft also?" she asked softly.  
  
He nodded the affirmative. "But I didn't know it was you until I walked over here. And I'm happy my friends are so suspicious."  
  
Her lips curled into a smile. "Well, it was quite annoying to be followed around without my knowledge, and even more annoying with my knowledge, but I suppose it did lead to something good."  
  
"Is it?" he asked, face inching closer to hers until their lips were only millimeters apart. "Something good?" And the gap was closed as she tilted her head up to meet his lips, eyes closing as they savored the taste of the other.  
  
Licking her parted lips, she murmured almost inaudibly, "Very good."  
  
Nuzzling the side of her face, Quatre pulled her closer into his arms, not wanting to let her go. And if he had his way, he'd never let her go again. "I can't believe you're here right now," he murmured.  
  
"Well, believe it, because now you're stuck with me," she teased as she poked him in the ribs.  
  
"Oh, I could think of worse things..." And he had. He could think of worse things, but he could think of nothing better.  
  
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Wufei paced the length of the sitting room, then retraced his steps. He had been pacing for the past hour. When the others had returned, they had given him no information on their progress other than how Quatre was taking care of it. They didn't say how, or when their fifth friend would be back. He grew quite suspicious that he was missing something, but the others weren't talking. He didn't know whether to be relieved or annoyed, so he settled on both.  
  
"What's with the pacing? You're wearing out the carpet," Duo commented as he plopped down on the couch and watching Wufei move back and forth across the room.  
  
Pausing only long enough to glare at the other man, Wufei retorted, "Damn the carpet. I want to know what's going on!"  
  
"Aww, is poor Wufei feeling out of the loop?"  
  
"Aha! So there *is* something you're not telling me!" Wufei swooped down in front of Duo, his eyes demanding an answer.  
  
"We don't know what's going on with Quatre's situation," Duo answered smoothly. And it was the truth. They had no idea what they had seen in the park. It could have been a million and one situations, and he wasn't going to waste his time trying to figure it out. Ok, so he *had* wasted some time trying to come up with some answers, but it was pretty fruitless. They wouldn't know what was going on until Quatre got back.  
  
At that moment, the door to the house opened, and they heard Quatre's voice echo, "I'm back!"  
  
Pushing each other out of the way, Duo and Wufei raced into the living room, as did the other two men. As each reached the room at the same time, they slowed in their pace to show that they weren't in fact eager to hear about Quatre's encounter with their blonde suspect. Of course, they all knew better.  
  
What they didn't know or expect was that Quatre was not alone in his arrival. Standing next to him, arm laced through his, was Usagi. While the others didn't know quite what to say, Wufei's face was steadily turning a flattering shade of purple. His shoulders started shaking as his lips tried to form words. All attention left the two new arrivals as it fell on the volcanic Chinese man, waiting for the explosion.  
  
They didn't have to wait long.  
  
"What the hell did you bring her back here for?" he bellowed at the top of his lungs, causing everyone to cringe. They knew he could yell, but this was above and beyond, even for him. "Are you daft?! What about Relena?"  
  
Usagi regarded the scene with wide eyes, but the smile never left her face. If anything, it broadened at the outburst. Keeping her eyes on the seething man, she said to Quatre, "Your description of his reaction was pretty accurate. What do I owe you?"  
  
Leaning down to whisper in his ear, he told her coyly, "I'll let you know later." As someone cleared their throat, Quatre looked up, cheeks flaming.  
  
Relena had just walked down the stairs, no doubt curious as to what all the shouting was all about. She was extremely surprised to see that Usagi was at the house, and even more surprised to see the intimate way she and Quatre were acting with one another. "I see we have a guest," she announced pleasantly. "Why don't we all sit down?" Leading the way, the others took her words as a command and not an invitation. They followed her into the sitting room, where they all took seats around the room, save Wufei, who refused to sit. He stood off to the side, arms crossed over his chest in defiance, an angry glare focused on Usagi and Quatre.  
  
At the expectant stares from the others, Quatre traded a glance with Usagi before beginning. "First off, I would like to formally introduce everyone to Tsukino Usagi. Usagi, you already know Trowa and Hiiro. The other two are Duo Maxwell and Chang Wufei," he pointed them out as he named them. "And, of course, Miss Relena," he smiled at the vice-foreign minister, who was perched on the couch's arm where Hiiro was sitting. Quatre noticed in amusement that one of Relena's hands was lazily resting on Hiiro's arm, while her other hand was discreetly playing with a wisp of his hair at the back of his neck. Looked like he wasn't the only one with a secret.  
  
Eyes turning back to the group, he continued on. "I'm sure you're wondering why I brought our supposed suspect to the mansion." He suppressed a grin a Duo's vigorous nod. "Well, she's not after Relena."  
  
"I knew it!" Duo cried as he jumped up from his seat, doing a little dance. At the incredulous looks from the others, he halted. Chuckling sheepishly, he admonished, "All right, so I wasn't quite sure. Sorry, babe," he added as an afterthought to Usagi.  
  
"I'll try not to be insulted," Usagi answered dryly.  
  
"Right then, back to the story," Quatre brought everyone's attention back to him. He didn't like the way Duo was sizing up Usagi. The sooner he finished the story, the sooner Duo would know to back off. "This isn't my first time meeting Usagi. We actually met six months ago at a club."  
  
"Then why didn't you tell us that you knew her?" Trowa asked, genuinely curious.  
  
Cheeks reddening slightly, Quatre replied, "I didn't put two and two together." He wasn't about to tell them that he had been slacking off at their meeting. They would ream him out, and then Hiiro would kill him. But there was no need to bring that on. They seemed to buy his answer, thankfully.  
  
"So you're good friends?" Duo asked, a hint of hopefulness in his voice. He really wanted to ask her out now that she wasn't a suspect.  
  
"I suppose I should tell you everything."  
  
Smacking him lightly on the arm, Usagi corrected with a wicked grin, "Not everything."  
  
The implications did not go unnoticed by certain members of the group. Trowa, who knew Quatre probably better than the man knew himself, caught onto the meaning behind Quatre's words, as did Hiiro, who never let anything slip by unnoticed.  
  
Surprisingly, it was Relena who spoke up at this. "So that was why you were acting so strangely back then," she mused aloud, more to herself than to the others. She stared directly at Quatre, then Usagi, then back again. "I trust everything worked itself out?"  
  
Usagi was floored. The woman was amazingly astute. How she was able to deduce everything before Quatre had even told them was beyond Usagi's comprehension. Then again, she always thought the other woman to be sharp.  
  
Everyone else, though, was still more confused than ever, and some, meaning Duo, were growing impatient with their not knowing. "What is everyone talking about? I'm so lost," he complained, throwing up his hands in exasperation.  
  
"Then I'll explain," Quatre finally spoke up after he got over the shock of Relena's words. "Usagi and I had a brief... relationship that ended because of a very large misunderstanding. When we met up again today, we sorted everything out. Well, after a brief shouting match." He grinned at the woman sitting beside him, squeezing her hand briefly.  
  
Wufei was amazingly silent throughout this entire conversation. He was shocked, that much was true. But he was still trying to wrap his mind around the idea of Quatre's moping being due to some woman. That fact was just bizarre to him. "So all of this, this anger and mood swings that you were having were because of this... woman?"  
  
Quatre frowned at the question. He was about to retort when Usagi broke in.  
  
"Remind me to introduce you to my friend Rei," she said to Wufei through a snort of laughter. "You two would get along, well, horribly, actually. But I think you'd both find the arguing entertaining."  
  
This brought on a round of laughter from Duo, which was instantly squelched at the warning growl that Wufei emitted low in his throat. Apparently this happened often, Usagi mused.  
  
"So does this mean you're off the market?" Duo asked Usagi once Wufei had stopped growling at him.  
  
"Afraid so, Duo. But I do have some other cute friends that I could introduce you to," Usagi commented with a wink, causing everyone to groan at the excited gleam in Duo's eyes.  
  
"On that note, I think it's time for lunch," Trowa spoke up before another round of Duo-bashing ensued. While it was fun, he imagined their braided friend could only put up with so much.  
  
So they all trooped into the kitchen to enjoy a semi-calm lunch.  
  
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That night, everyone was retiring to their rooms for the evening. After a long day of talking, explaining, and telling stories, everyone was ready to get to bed early.  
  
"We have an extra room for you, Usagi," Trowa told her as they climbed the stairs to the hallway where the bedrooms were located.  
  
Smiling sweetly at him, she replied, "Thank you, but that isn't necessary. I'll be sharing a room with Quatre."  
  
Her answer made him blush. "Oh. Of course. Good night then." And to her surprise, he leaned over and gave her a quick hug before going into his room and closing the door quietly behind him.  
  
"Are you sure you don't want to go out with me?" Duo had come up the stairs behind her and now had an arm draped casually over her shoulders.  
  
"Duo!" she smacked him in the chest.  
  
"Hey, can't blame a guy for trying," he shrugged. Continuing down the hallway to his room, he called over his shoulder, "Welcome to our crazy family!"  
  
Wufei brushed past her next, a heavy scowl on his face. He didn't say two words to her either way, but that scowl spoke for itself. He went into his room, slamming the door behind him.  
  
Shaking her head in amusement, Usagi was startled when someone touched her arm. Whirling around, she found herself face to face with Hiiro.  
  
He stared at her for a minute, not saying anything, just studying her face intently. Finally, he said quietly, "You won't hurt him." It wasn't a threat, just a mere statement, and Usagi was both puzzled and grateful for the words. As an afterthought, he added, "I still don't trust you." Then he gave her a tiny half-smile for the briefest of seconds, making Usagi wonder if she even saw it at all. "But I do trust Quatre, so I won't kill you."  
  
"Now if that isn't the sweetest thing ever heard, I don't know what is," Relena commented with a straight face as she joined them. She received a glare from Hiiro, but it was expertly ignored.  
  
"I'm going to check out your room to make sure it's secure," he growled before going into Relena's room.  
  
Smiling after him, Relena turned to Usagi. "I don't know what exactly went on between you two, but I'm happy you patched things up," she spoke in a quiet tone, since Quatre was heading up the stairs toward them. "And I *do* trust you, so I hope we can become friends?"  
  
"Absolutely," Usagi replied, touched by the statement. She gave Relena a hug in her thanks.  
  
"Now, I'd better get back to Hiiro, make sure he checks my room correctly." Eyes twinkling, Relena disappeared into the same room Hiiro had gone into and closed the door behind her.  
  
As Quatre walked up next to her, Usagi asked him, "Is there something going on between those two?" She gestured to Relena's room.  
  
"I couldn't give you a definite answer, but if anyone could get to Hiiro, it would be Relena." He swooped down and grazed his lips over her cheek. "Tired?"  
  
"I wasn't a second ago, but I wouldn't say no to retiring to our room."  
  
At her sly grin, Quatre matched it with one of his own before reminding her, "We still have to meet your friends tomorrow..."  
  
"We'll make it an afternoon trip, then," she whispered as she brushed her lips over his before leading him into their room.  
  
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What did you think? See how this would have been a good place to end the fic? Probably not, because if you've made it this far, I'm sure you want to read more. ^*^ I tried to add some more humor in this chapter. I've just been dealing with the drama, so I figured a good laugh was needed. Sadly, it was all at the expense of Duo and Wufei. But they did deserve it! Anyway, please review! I cherish my reviews, and they make me want to keep on writing. I love you guys! 


	12. You're My Family Now

I'm sorry this took so long to get out. I've been working a lot these past few weeks, plus getting ready for school to start again (only 8 more days of freedom left!), so I haven't had much time to write. But here it is, the last chapter! I've really had fun with this fic, let me tell you. Because honestly, how many Q/U fics are there floating about these days? Not many, I can assure you! And while H/U will forever be my fave couple, Quatre is just as cute and deserves the spotlight. I hope you're not disappointed with this last chapter. Read on and enjoy!  
  
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"Come on now. They're not that bad..."  
  
"But you told me they might want to kill me!" Quatre argued as he resisted Usagi's firm tugging on his arm.  
  
"Oh, but that didn't stop you from delivering me to the wrath of Wufei last night," Usagi challenged as she dragged him up the stairs of the Hikawa shrine. As they reached the top she paused, turning to a nervous Quatre. "They just care about me is all," she said softly. Squeezing his hand tightly, she added with a wicked grin, "Besides, I won't let them touch you. You're all mine."  
  
"Mmm, glad to hear it," he said, leaning down for a kiss.  
  
Ducking out of the embrace, Usagi shook her finger playfully at him. "Now now, no distracting me from the task at hand. There'll be plenty of time for that later."  
  
"Assuming I'm still in one piece," Quatre muttered as he allowed himself to be pulled by Usagi.  
  
They stopped in front of a sliding door. Loud, muffled laughter could be heard from the other side. Taking a deep breath, Usagi slowly pushed the door open. Immediately the chatter stopped. "Hey, guys."  
  
"Hey, Usagi," they all chorused, beckoning for her to join them.  
  
"Um, I brought someone along with me, someone I want you to meet." Usagi was nervous, extremely nervous. More than anything in the world, she wanted her friends to approve of the man she loved, for she did indeed love him. While she hadn't told him so yet, she knew the feelings were there and that they would be returned.  
  
"Guests are always welcome," Rei spoke up front her seat on the floor. She couldn't keep the curiosity out of her voice. Who had Usagi brought along?  
  
Smiling in relief, Usagi stepped into the room, followed by Quatre. "Everyone, this is Quatre Winner."  
  
To say that the women were shocked was an understatement. Their mouths literally dropped open, eyes wide. They had no clue that Usagi had a boyfriend! And they definitely knew that he was a boyfriend, judging from the clasped hands and the way they stood close together. This was totally unexpected.  
  
Minako was the first to recover. "Usagi, he's cute!" she winked at them, making everyone groan and Quatre blush.  
  
Taking a seat next to her friends around the table, Usagi scooted over to make room for Quatre beside her, then instantly regretted putting him next to Rei. When things got heated, and she knew that they inevitably would, Rei would be the first person to get angry. But she promised Quatre that no bodily harm would come to him, and she fully intended to keep that promise. Besides, they wouldn't act *that* irrationally, would they?  
  
Oh, they would.  
  
Taking the initiative in the awkward silence, Ami spoke up, "So, how long have you two been together?"  
  
"One day," Usagi answered at the same time that Quatre said, "Six months." They looked at each other and chuckled.  
  
"How is that?" Makoto asked, eyes narrowing at Quatre. "You're not some kind of stalker, are you?"  
  
"Of course he's not!" Usagi burst in, insulted. But, if she were being honest... "Well, kind of," she admitted.  
  
"What?" they all screeched.  
  
"I'm a bodyguard," Quatre interjected once they settled down some. "It's my job to follow suspicious people and make sure they're not targeting my client. That's actually how I ran into Usagi."  
  
Throwing glances between the two of them, Rei gathered, "So you were following Usagi around because you thought she was dangerous?" Her voice was low, calm, but Usagi could detect more than a subtle note of suspicion and anger. She knew she needed to squelch this fire, and fast.  
  
"Technically, yes." Quatre saw that that wasn't exactly the right answer, so he continued quickly, "It might be safer to start from the beginning, when we first met." He glanced over at Usagi, silently pleading with her to help.  
  
Giving him a reassuring smile, she turned to her friends as she took over the story. "That's right. We actually met six months ago, in a club." She wasn't about to divulge any more information than needed, just like they hadn't with Quatre's friends. There were just some things that needed to be left out. Besides, she'd give them all the details later. Much, much later.  
  
But Rei, bless her wonderful memory, put the timeframe back to when Usagi had started acting less like her former self and more like a forlorn shadow of who she used to be. And she would bet anything that this man was the cause of that. It was just a feeling that she got from him. It was too much of a coincidence. "It was your fault," she muttered quietly to herself.  
  
"What?" Usagi asked. She could tell by the look on Rei's face that whatever she had said was not good, but there was no preventing it at this point. Better to get it out and over with.  
  
"I said, it's all you're fault!" Rei accused Quatre with a snarl. "You're the reason she was so upset for the past six months, weren't you? You did something to her!"  
  
"What did you do?" Makoto demanded through gritted teeth. She hadn't put two and two together, but she could tell something was up judging from Rei's reaction. Maybe the priestess had had a vision. She always was good at reading people.  
  
"Calm down, you two," Ami tried in vain to suffuse their anger, but her attempts just weren't getting anywhere. She sighed, sitting back to allow what would happen, to happen.  
  
Minako watched in fascination as Usagi, Quatre, Rei, and Makoto jumped to their feet. She sure as hell wasn't about to jump into the middle of things, but at least she had a good seat for when Makoto started throwing punches!  
  
Usagi stood protectively in front of Quatre. While she was sure he was more than capable of taking care of himself, she couldn't help but feel responsible for putting him in this situation. After all, these were her friends acting irrationally! "Quatre didn't *do* anything!" she argued back. "It was just--"  
  
"Just what? Just him being a typical male?" Rei sneered, clenching her hands into fists so tightly that her fingernails dug into her palms. "What did he do that shut you off from the rest of the world?"  
  
"If you physically touched her, so help me..." Makoto growled, pushing up the sleeves of her sweater and taking a step toward Quatre menacingly.  
  
"Are you insinuating that I might have hit her? Because if you are, I suggest you take that back," Quatre said each word slowly, deliberately. He was normally a calm man, but they were really trying his patience. And then, to say something as absurd as him hitting Usagi... Honestly! This was getting way out of hand!  
  
"What are you going to do about it?" Makoto challenged, stepping around Usagi and getting in Quatre's face. "If you want to hit a woman, try hitting me!"  
  
"Guys, please..." Usagi pleaded, trying to push them away from each other.  
  
"No, Usagi. If she wants to fight, let her fight," Quatre smirked at the taller woman, making her seethe in barely controlled rage.  
  
"Why, you little--"  
  
"All right, I didn't want to do this, but you leave me no choice." Stepping between the two just before Makoto lunged, she forcefully pushed them away from each other so that they flew in opposite directions, sliding across the floor on their backsides. "Are you quite finished?" she snapped as everyone looked at her in astonishment. "Did this little display fulfill your violence quotas of the day? Because I've had my fair share. But if need be, I'll use more. Now, do I need to resort to drastic measures?" she turned her glare back and forth between the three, receiving three negatives. "Good. Now sit back down, and let me explain."  
  
Once they were all in their respective spots, this time with Quatre sitting between Usagi and Ami, Usagi began her tale again, in a voice that dared anyone to interrupt her. "Like I said before, Quatre and I met in a dance club six months earlier. We were both pretty down, so we consoled each other." At this she blushed, leaving no room for doubt as to exactly what she meant by those words. "The next day, I left him my number, and he promised to call, but he never called."  
  
When she said this, all four women shot Quatre a look, but Usagi came to his defense. "He didn't not call on purpose," she said quickly. "Something happened to the paper I wrote my number on, and he never got it."  
  
"Then why didn't he look it up?" Rei asked, pointedly staring at Quatre.  
  
"I was leaving on assignment that morning," Quatre explained. He had told all of this to Usagi, too, the night before. "I've only been back in town for a couple of weeks, and I've been too busy with my job to stop and coherently think about something as simple as picking up a telephone directory and doing a name search."  
  
"And if *I* had thought about it, I could have gone through Winner Corp. and gotten his number," Usagi put in. "But I didn't, and he didn't, and it doesn't matter now. Let's move on." Once everyone's attention was focused on her, she continued. "At work last night, I happened to meet Vice Foreign Minister Relena Peacecraft, who was in disguise. But I recognized her, and we had a nice chat. That is, until two of her other bodyguards came in and whisked her away. Knowing that I knew she was in town, they set out to follow me around to make sure I didn't leak it to anyone, or go after her myself. Needless to say, a couple of bodyguards later, I happened to run into Quatre. We sorted everything out, and here we are now."  
  
At the end of her story, all four women just stared at her, not quite sure what to say. Once again, it was Minako who broke the silence. "Well, if that's not a fairy-tale ending, I don't know what is!" she exclaimed with a bright smile. "I, for one, am happy that you two found each other again."  
  
"Thank you, Minako. That really means a lot to me, to us," Usagi reached across the table and hugged her blonde friend. She turned towards the others, silently waiting, hoping, for some kind of positive response.  
  
"I agree with Minako," Ami supplied. "This is great news."  
  
"Thanks, Ames," Usagi hugged her too. She glanced at the other two, who were silent. With a disappointed sigh, she announced, "Well, we should probably be going then." She stood, pulling Quatre with her. The others stood, too.  
  
Before Usagi could make it out the door, Rei touched her arm. "Could I talk to you for a minute?" she asked in a low voice.  
  
Moving over to the other side of the room, Usagi stared curiously at her friend, hoping for some kind of explanation as to the angry outburst there. She was not disappointed.  
  
"I'm sorry," Rei apologized guiltily, staring down at the floor. "I just worry about you. I mean, after that whole fiasco with Mamoru..."  
  
Usagi held up her hands. "No need to dwell in the past. Yes, Mamoru did hurt me, but we're friends now. I know you guys think I can't take care of myself--"  
  
"That's not it!" Rei's head snapped up in surprise. "You're the strongest person I know. We just don't want you to get hurt. It's hard to remember that there's no more threat to protect you against."  
  
"You can't protect me from heartache, no matter how hard you try." Usagi pulled Rei into a hug, rocking her back and forth. "Sometimes a person needs to experience these things on her own. I think I'm stronger for it."  
  
Releasing her friend, Usagi smiled as she blinked back tears. "I love you guys. You're my family, and you always will be. I'll always need you."  
  
"Same here," Rei choked out as she tried to blink her own tears back.  
  
"Good. Now then, we should be on our way." She moved towards the door.  
  
"I'm not taking her away from you," a voice said from behind Rei.  
  
She whirled around, now face to face with Quatre. "What do you--"  
  
"I'm not going to hurt her, either. I give you my word."  
  
Rei regarded him carefully. "There's something about you..." she muttered.  
  
"You're different from the others, too. You see things they don't," he said in a low voice. "I hope you'll be able to see that all I want is to make Usagi happy."  
  
Giving him a tiny half-smile, Rei replied, "Maybe in time."  
  
That would be the best Quatre would receive. He quickly caught up with Usagi, who bid her friends farewell and led him out of the room.  
  
"Well, that was a big success," she joked halfheartedly, collapsing in his arms.  
  
"Don't worry; it'll all be sorted out," he assured her.  
  
Giving a sigh, she continued, "I just think it's hilarious that my friends were so much more hostile than yours when they found out."  
  
"That's because they only want you to be happy."  
  
"As do your friends." Clasping his hand, they descended down the stairs. "You're right," she said finally. "We'll give it time, and everything will turn out wonderfully."  
  
A few days later...  
  
"Are you sure you don't want to come with us?" Relena asked Usagi. They stood outside the mansion, suitcases strewn about. The guys were bustling back and forth, packing and repacking the black Explorer parked out front.  
  
"After a long talk, this is the final decision. It'll just be better this way," Usagi answered firmly. They had discussed their options long into the night, and they finally came to an agreement. There was no changing minds now.  
  
"Well, we're going to miss you." Relena pulled Usagi into a hug, clutching the other woman tightly.  
  
"Me too. But we'll see each other again," Usagi said brightly, forcing herself to stay calm and not cry.  
  
"It's time to go," Trowa announced solemnly, gaining both women's attention.  
  
"This is it, then," Usagi smiled bravely. They walked over to where the men were gathered. The first to approach her was Duo. "Duo, what can I say?"  
  
"Nothing to be said, babe. This is the way things are," Duo gave her a lopsided grin and hugged her. "But if you're ever in need of companionship and I'm in town..."  
  
"Duo!" she smacked his arm playfully.  
  
Next was Trowa who approached. "Trowa, you were the first one to be nice to me, even though I was a suspect."  
  
He gave her a tiny smile. The two of them had become fast friends in the past few days. He wanted to make sure his best friend would be happy with her, and he was more than sure that the two would spend the rest of their lives together. She really was something remarkable. "You're the sweetest suspect I've ever had to spy on," he told her, earning a chuckle in response. "Take care of yourself, all right?" He embraced her briefly before stepping away.  
  
"Wufei..." Usagi acknowledged the Chinese man as he approached.  
  
He looked like he was having difficulty choosing his words. Finally he said, "Well, you're not as annoying as I once thought you were."  
  
Trying hard not to laugh, Usagi returned, "Thanks, Wufei." Much to his horror, she pulled him into a hug. He struggled to get loose, scowling at her once he did so. Everyone started laughing as he glared at them all.  
  
Stepping up to Usagi, Hiiro just stared at her. She stared back, not breaking the gaze. This went on for a few moments before he said in a low voice so that only she could hear, "I trust you now." As she blinked at the words, he held out his hand.  
  
Grinning, Usagi took his hand, shaking it briefly. Then she tugged him forward and into a hug. He stiffened for a second, then relaxed and allowed his arms to encircle her before pulling away. "Thank you, Hiiro. It means a lot to me," she murmured.  
  
He grunted in response, then stepped away.  
  
Finally Quatre was in front of her. "Are you sure about this?" he asked her, eyes searching hers imploringly.  
  
"I'm sure. I love you, Quatre. We're in this together, right?"  
  
His eyes lit up at her words, as that was the first time she had proclaimed her love to him. Smiling softly down at her, he returned, "I love you too, Usagi." He leaned down and kissed her, then turned to his friends. "I guess this is it, then," he told them.  
  
"Looks like it. We'll miss you, man," Duo said.  
  
"Me too, but Usagi and I want to start building our lives together, so this was the decision that had to be made." He stepped forward and shook hands with his friends and partners in crime, then finally stopped in front of Relena. He smiled at her, adoration shining in his eyes.  
  
Embracing him, Relena whispered, "You take care of her. And yourself."  
  
"I will," he promised as he gave her one last squeeze and then released her. "And you take care of Hiiro and the others."  
  
She grinned impishly and said in a low voice, "Hiiro I can keep out of trouble. The others will have to fend for themselves." She winked at him and then turned to the others. "Time to go, guys."  
  
They all piled into the Explorer, calling goodbyes back and forth. Trowa, who was in the passenger seat, rolled the window down and told the couple, "We'll be back in a couple of months."  
  
"Stay in touch," Usagi requested as they began to pull out of the driveway.  
  
"Bye, guys!" Quatre and Usagi waved at them until they were long out the front security gates.  
  
"Are you upset that you're staying here?" Usagi asked him, regarding his quietude as regret and sadness. "It's like you're leaving your family behind."  
  
Gathering her into his arms, Quatre shook his head. "No, it's not. You're my family now." He kissed her deeply, arms holding up her lithe form. "Now let's go home."  
  
Hand in hand, they walked up the stone steps and into Winner mansion, closing the heavy doors behind them.  
  
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The end! For real this time. First off, I want to thank everyone who has read and/or reviewed this fic, because it really means the world to me. I also want to say that this gives me motivation to start trying to work on MSWG again. I think it was difficult for me to work on two x-overs plus all those HP fics too, so now I can concentrate on that one. And hopefully I'll be able to update it soon. If you want to know the next time I update MSWG, leave me your e-mail addy.  
  
Thanks again for the wonderful support with this fic! I love each and every one of you! 


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